Ordained: 1962
Status: Settled
Died: 12/25/2010
Diocese: Diocese of Bridgeport CT
Father Laurence Brett has been accused of sexually abusing more than two dozen altar boys and other victims, ranging in age from 10 to 18, in Connecticut, New Mexico, California, and Maryland throughout his time as a priest. There were also two known female victims. In 1964, the Bridgeport diocese sent him to Servants of the Paraclete in New Mexico for treatment after the parents of one victim complained to the papal nuncio, and Brett admitted to the abuse.
Bishop Curtis wrote in a memo that “hepatitis was to be feigned” as the reason Father Laurence Brett was leaving. In 1994, a settlement of $250,000 was reached with two victims who were molested in Sacramento, California. From 1972 to 1974, Brett served as a chaplain at Calvert Hall in Baltimore, where at least 14 former students alleged abuse.
Brett produced Share the Word materials, which were widely used in Maryland from 1974 to 1993. In 1990, Bishop Egan met with Father Laurence Brett and was impressed by him. However, Egan removed him from ministry in 1993 when a suit was filed against the Bridgeport diocese, which settled for $750,000. In 1993, Brett fled to the Caribbean, where he reportedly continued to have contact with children. Some people connected to the Church knew where he was but did not inform law enforcement. In 2002, reporters located him, but he fled again.
Brett’s name was included on the Baltimore archdiocese’s list on 9/25/2002. He was laicized in 2006 and named in a 2008 civil suit. A settlement was reached for $80,000 in 2008. Brett died on 12/25/2010. His name was also included on the Santa Fe archdiocese list on 9/12/2017, and he was included in the 4/5/23 MD Attorney General’s Report.